Forestry
pin oak Leaf: Alternate, simple, 3 to 6 inches long, oval in outline with 5 to 9 bristle-tipped lobes and irregularly deep sinuses that extend nearly to the midrib. Major lobes form a U-shape. Bright green above and pale below with axillary tifts. Flower: Monoecious; male flowers borne on slender, drooping yellow-green catkins; females reddish green borne on short spikes in new leaf axils, appearing in the spring with the leaves. Fruit: Acorns are 1/2 inch long, striated, round (but flattened at the cap); thin and saucer-like cap, covered with red-brown appressed scales; matures after 2 years, dispersed fall to early winter. Twig: Slender, red-brown in color and quite lustrous with multiple terminal buds that are small, pointed, and chestnut brown. Bark: Gray-brown and very tight and thin; remains smooth for many years, eventually develops thin ridges and furrows. Form: A medium sized tree that is very pyramidal; lower branches are pendulous and middle branches grow at right angles; branches are studded with numerous branchlets that do not prune readily, resulting in a spiny appearance. chestnut oak Leaf: Alternate, simple, 4 to 6 inches long, obovate to elliptical in shape with a crenate margin, shiny green above and paler below. Flower: Monoecious; male flowers are yellow-green, borne in naked catkins, 2 to 4 inches long; female flowers are reddish and appear as single spikes, appearing with the leaves in mid-spring. Fruit: Acorns are 1 to 1 1/2 inches long, ovoid in shape and separate from the cap when mature; cap is thin, warty and shaped like a teacup, edges of cap are very thin; matures in one growing season, ripening in the fall. Twig: Medium textured, lacking hair, orange-brown or grayish in color with chestnut brown multiple terminal buds that are pointed, narrowly conical and quite long. Bark: Gray-brown to brown, very smooth when young; developing hard and wide flat-topped ridges which later become thicker and more sharply pointed ridges; somewhat resembling the back of an alligator or ridge tops. Form: A medium sized tree to 80 feet tall that on better sites will develop a straight trunk and narrow crown; on drier ridge tops it is much smaller with a crooked stem. northern red oak Leaf: Alternate, simple, 5 to 8 inches long, oblong in shape with 7 to 11 bristle-tipped lobes, sinuses extend 1/3 to 1/2 of the way to midvein, generally very uniform in shape, dull green to blue-green above and paler below. Flower: Monoecious; males in yellow-green slender, hanging catkins, 2 to 4 inches long; females are borne on short axiliary spikes, appearing with the leaves in spring. Fruit: Acorns are 3/4 to 1 inch long and nearly round; cap is flat and thick, covering about 1/4 or less of the acorn, resembling a beret; matures in 2 growing seasons, in late summer and fall. Twig: Quite stout, red-brown and glabrous; terminal buds multiple, quite large, conical, and covered with red-brown, mostly hairless scales but terminal scales may bear some frosty pubescence. Bark: On young stems, smooth; older bark develops wide, flat-topped ridges and shallow furrows. The shallow furrows form a pattern resembling ski tracts. Form: A medium sized to large tree that reaches up to 90 feet tall, develops a short trunk and round crown when open grown, straight with a clear, long bole when grown with competition. black oak Leaf: Alternate, simple, 4 to 10 inches long, obovate or ovate in shape with 5 (mostly) to 7 bristle-tipped lobes; leaf shape is variable, with sun leaves having deep sinuses and shade leaves having very shallow sinuses, lustrous shiny green above, paler with a scruffy pubescence and axillary tufts below. Flower: Monecious, males borne on slender yellow-green catkins; females are reddish green and borne on short spikes in leaf axils, appearing in spring with the leaves. Fruit: Ovoid acorns, 1/2 to 3/4 inch long, 1/3 to 1/2 enclosed in a bowl-shaped cap; cap scales are loosely appressed (particularly loose on edges of cap), light brown and fuzzy, matures in 2 years in late summer and fall. Twig: Stout and red-brown to gray-green, usually glabrous but rapidly growing twigs may be hairy; buds are very large (1/4 to 1/2 inch long), buff-colored, fuzzy, pointed and distinctly angular. Bark: At first gray and smooth, becoming thick and very rough, nearly black and deeply furrowed vertically with horizontal breaks. The inner bark is yellow-orange and very bitter tasting. Form: A medium sized tree to 80 feet with an irregular crown and a tapering, somewhat limby bole. live oak Leaf: Alternate, simple, evergreen, leathery, 2 to 5 inches long, oblong or elliptical in shape with an entire or spiny and revolute margin. The upper surface is lustrous, the lower is pale and pubescent. Generally, not bristle-tipped. Flower: Staminate flowers borne on catkins. Pistillate flowers borne on spikes, appearing spring. Fruit: Acorns in clusters of 3 to 5, dark nut, 3/4 inch long and covered 1/3 by the cap; cap is bowl-shaped, turbinate, and warty; maturing in early fall of the first year. Twig: Slender, gray and pubescent, with small, blunt, multiple terminal buds. Bark: Rapidly developing red-brown furrows with small surface scales; later becoming black and very blocky. Form: A medium sized tree that can grow to massive proportions. Open-grown trees develop a huge rounded crown. The largest crowns may be 150 feet across. Hackberry Leaf: Alternate, simple, ovate, 2 to 5 inches long, serrated margin, pinnately veined, with acuminate tip and an inequilateral base, three distinct veins originate from base, maybe hairy or scruffy, green above and paler and somewhat pubescent below. Flower: Monoecious; very small (1/8 inch), light green, produced on stalks from new leaf axils. Each flower with a 4 or 5 lobed calyx, appearing in spring. Fruit: Round drupe, 1/4 to 3/8 inch in diameter, turning orange-red to dark purple when ripe, flesh is thin and quite dry but edible and sweet, enclosing a large pit, maturing in early fall. Twig: Slender, zigzag, light red-brown with numerous lighter lenticels; terminal bud is lacking, but a pseudoterminal bud is present. Lateral buds are small, tan, triangular, and appressed, pith is often chambered at the nodes. Bark: Smooth and gray-brown when young, soon developing corky, individual "warts" which later develop into rough corky, irregular ridges. Form: A small to medium sized tree reaching up to 60 feet tall with a wide spreading crown.